However, he was wearing a black brocade robe, so even though it was soaked in blood, it was not noticeable.
After much effort, Jian Yang finally managed to drag Zhou Jing'an into the house.
The room was empty and dusty, with cobwebs covering the beams, indicating it had been abandoned for an unknown period of time.
Given that Zhou Jing'an had protected her to some extent, Jian Yang did not abandon him.
She first took his pulse and found that his fainting was due to fatigue and hunger, in addition to excessive blood loss.
Thinking of Zhou Jing'an's previous display of skill in killing enemies, Jian Yang couldn't help but exclaim, "Awesome!"
If she didn't eat for a few days, she wouldn't even be able to lift a knife, let alone fight or kill.
Right now, in addition to medicine to heal wounds and stop bleeding, food is also needed.
But looking around this bare house, you couldn't find a single grain of rice, or even a single rat dropping.
After a moment's thought, Jian Yang reached into Zhou Jing'an's pocket and pulled out a fine piece of mutton-fat jade.
She immediately smiled; with this thing, she figured she could make a lot of money.
Before leaving, she also took the jade thumb ring from Zhou Jing'an's left thumb, showing no remorse for taking advantage of his misfortune.
Jian Yang first drew some water from the well in the yard, which was not yet dry, to wash the blood off her hands. Then she smeared some soot on her face before hurriedly going out.
She had thought that pawning such a valuable item would arouse the pawnshop's suspicion, but to her surprise, they only cared about the value of the item and didn't care at all why a disheveled woman like her would be carrying such a treasure.
However, every gain has its loss; the pawnshop clerk ripped her off.
The jade pendant, originally worth a thousand gold pieces, was ultimately pawned for only three hundred taels of silver notes and ten taels of loose silver.
The ten taels of silver were a special request from Jian Yang, and the shopkeeper naturally agreed so that it would be convenient to buy medicine and vegetables later.
After leaving the pawnshop, Jian Yang went straight to the pharmacy across the street and bought some medicinal herbs, ointments, and gauze for treating her injuries.
Then he went and bought a bottle of strong liquor, two pounds of flour, ten eggs, and salt.
There's no need to buy pots and utensils; the kitchen where they're hiding has them. She saw them when she smeared soot on her face.
When she returned, she found that Zhou Jing'an was still in the same position she had left in, and it seemed that he had not woken up in the middle of the journey.
Jian Yang went to the woodshed, fetched a bundle of straw, spread it on the ground, and then cleaned and bandaged his wound.
Then I dug up some wild vegetables in the yard and cooked a pot of egg drop and wild vegetable dumpling soup.
She drank half a bowl herself, then filled another half bowl and went to the main room.
"Hey, Your Highness, get up and eat."
Without thinking twice, Jian Yang grabbed Zhou Jing'an and shook him violently, which actually woke him up.
Zhou Jing'an opened his blurry eyes, and it took him a while to focus.
Jian Yang handed the bowl to him, her tone much better than before: "You haven't eaten for several days. Eat this first to fill your stomach, and I'll go out and buy some meat for you to replenish your body this evening."
She would have bought the meat long ago if she hadn't bought too much stuff and couldn't carry it all.
Zhou Jing'an was indeed hungry, and he finished half a bowl of dumpling soup in just a few gulps while holding the chipped porcelain bowl.
After finishing his meal, he smacked his lips, savoring the taste, and asked, "Is there any more?"
Jian Yang served him another bowl.
However, his body was too weak, and he fell asleep again not long after eating.
As Jian Yang went to the kitchen to brew medicine and wash dishes, she pondered what path she should take in the future.
Now that she has three hundred taels of silver in her pocket, going to the northern border to find her brother shouldn't be a problem.
If that's not enough, pawn Zhou Jing'an's jade thumb ring as well.
However, life is tough these days, and it's even harder for single women to get by.
After much thought, Jian Yang decided to first cure Zhou Jing'an, then have him act as her bodyguard to escort her to the northern border, and then have her brother send troops to send him back to the capital.
Such a win-win situation is unlikely to be rejected by Zhou Jing'an.
After feeding him the medicine, Jian Yang decided to go out and buy a chicken.
"Your Highness, please rest well. I will be back shortly."
Zhou Jing'an nodded weakly.
As soon as Jian Yang closed the door, his originally gentle gaze immediately turned cold and chilling.
At this moment, a man nimbly jumped in through the window, knelt on one knee in front of Zhou Jing'an, and presented him with the mutton-fat jade pendant that Jian Yang had pawned.
"Your Highness, shall we continue?" the man asked respectfully.
Zhou Jing'an shook his head and said, "The Empress went to buy chickens."
man:"?"
Zhou Jing'an said, "I'd also like to try her cooking."
man:"?"
"Keep the jade pendant for me for now, and tell the brothers to come back in a couple of days."
"yes!"
Zhou Jing'an wasn't lying; he genuinely wanted to try Jian Yang's cooking.
Long ago, he heard from palace spies that the Empress would often cook for the Emperor herself.
He didn't take it to heart at the time.
They assumed the two of them were just playing house.
He had just drunk the dumpling soup she made and suddenly thought it tasted pretty good, which made him look forward to the chicken soup that was coming next.
After receiving the jade pendant, the man took out a bottle of medicine from his pocket and handed it over with both hands.
"This is medicine for your injuries, prepared by the imperial physician. Please take it as soon as possible, Your Highness."
Zhou Jing'an waved his hand and said, "The Empress knows medicine. If I recover too quickly, she will definitely become suspicious. You can go now. I'm fine."
man:"……"
Jian Yang returned half an hour later.
In addition to buying a chicken, she also bought some extra seasonings and tonics, intending to simmer them all into the chicken soup later.
During dinner, she told Zhou Jing'an about her plan to go to the northern border, and Zhou Jing'an smiled and agreed.
But then he asked curiously, "Doesn't the Empress want to return to the Emperor's side?"
Jian Yang was too embarrassed to say that by the time she got back, the emperor would probably have already established a new empress, after all, she also had her pride.
So she just smiled and said, "Now that we're out here, we should definitely have a good time."
A moment of shock flashed in Zhou Jing'an's eyes.
He painstakingly staged a self-inflicted injury scheme, but in her eyes it was just a game?
This woman is indeed extraordinary.
For a moment, he felt a mix of emotions.
Two days later, under Jian Yang's careful care, Zhou Jing'an's health had basically recovered to about 70-80%, and his bodyguards, who had disguised themselves as kidnappers, arrived as promised.
Jian Yang was prepared this time. She sprinkled the itching powder she had made in the past two days all over them, and then fled with Zhou Jing'an.
When the two of them were tired and resting, Zhou Jing'an laughed and said, "So it turns out that the reason I was so itchy all over in the palace last time was really the Empress's doing."
"No, no, don't talk nonsense."
Jian Yang immediately denied it three times.
Seeing him looking at her with an all-knowing expression, Jian Yang decided to throw caution to the wind and said, "Alright, alright, I didn't expose your affair with Consort Yu to the Emperor, and you don't need to hold it against me for poisoning you. Let's call it even."
Zhou Jing'an laughed and said, "No problem, no problem."
“However,” Jian Yang frowned, “since Consort Yu is your lover, why didn’t she stop Prince Dingbian, but instead let that old geezer do this to you?”
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